Actually, I have had the opposite experience. When an
intern brings a different set of skills to the table,
it can be a win-win situation.

For example, we recently had a college-level intern
who was majoring in graphic design. As a result of
this, she was able to create a number of ads and print
materials for us that otherwise we would have had to
shop out. She still did more "intern" types of
projects, such as cleaning up a database, but we
figured out what she had that we needed and used it.

She has some real work experience that she can show
people, and we were thrilled with her.

The main thing here is that both the organization and
the intern should have a need that can be met by the
other. The only unsuccessful intern situations I have
seen were ones in which either there wasn't enough for
the intern to do, or the expectations of the staff
were too high.

Megan Balderston
Director of Education and Public Programs
Hinsdale Center for the Arts
Hinsdale, IL


--- Susannah West <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> Our museum may be getting an intern next year and
> I'm wondering about
> others' experiences of how staff and interns "get
> along."  The requirements
> for a tour guide at our museum are not great;
> hopefully one enjoys "working
> with the public" and has at least a high school
> diploma, but this isn't
> necessary.  (I myself have a masters in natural
> resources, with an emphasis
> in environmental interpretation and was told when I
> interviewed that I was
> "overqualified.")  An intern who would be majoring
> in some aspect of the
> museum field would obviously be more knowledgeable,
> and I wonder if this
> might not create friction between him/her and the
> staff.
> 
> Susannah West
> John Rankin House
> Ripley, Ohio
> 
>
=========================================================
> Important Subscriber Information:
> 
> The Museum-L FAQ file is located at
> http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may
> obtain detailed information about the listserv
> commands by sending a one line e-mail message to
> [log in to unmask] . The body of the
> message should read "help" (without the quotes).
> 
> If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one
> line e-mail message to [log in to unmask]
> . The body of the message should read "Signoff
> Museum-L" (without the quotes).
> 


__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com 

=========================================================
Important Subscriber Information:

The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes).

If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).